Fastenal (FAST) to Release Earnings on Friday

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) is projected to release its earnings data before the market opens on Friday, April 11th. Analysts expect Fastenal to post earnings of $0.52 per share and revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter. Persons that wish to register for the company’s earnings conference call can do so using this link.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect Fastenal to post $2 EPS for the current fiscal year and $2 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Fastenal Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $71.20 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $75.27 and its 200 day moving average is $76.20. Fastenal has a 52 week low of $61.36 and a 52 week high of $84.88. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 4.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market cap of $40.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.42, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s payout ratio is 85.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

An institutional investor recently bought a new position in Fastenal stock. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 6,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $496,000. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FAST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. William Blair upgraded Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. HSBC cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Fastenal from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Company Profile

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, North America, and internationally. It offers fasteners, and related industrial and construction supplies under the Fastenal name. The company’s fastener products include threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, studs, and related washers that are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.